FROM THE Friday, July 16, 1999 ISSUE

© 1999, The Daily Beacon. All rights reserved.

Band 'swings' at Fairbanks

Nathaniel Arthur

Staff Writer

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This city has its share of rock bands, so apparently it rocks. There is also a fine jazz scene here, but recently Knoxville has begun to swing. Tonight at Fairbanks Roasting Room near Market Square, a real big band, the Streamliners, is playing. The music the Streamliners play is so different that popular culture has given it its own trend.

"Swing" is the term used for the dance-music with jazz instrumentation being played on radios. This collection of sounds is heavily influenced by rock or rock-a-billy and departs from swing-jazz tradition. Generally, the "rock-a-billy swing" is characterized by a flippant use of the bass as a prop and the key role of the rhythm guitar - things that don' t rightly occur in real swing music.

The Streamliners band was formerly known as the Uptown Rhythm Kings, and they've been together with mostly the same bunch of guys for about a year. When they played at spots like the Campus Pub, their audiences got the chance to romp about, swinging their partners in retro-garb. If they were listening closely, they heard music that could be danced to and was well-played. In short, the dancers danced to music they could also enjoy just listening to.

According to trumpeter Thomas Heflin, who started the band along with bassist Misha Goldman and singer/trumpeter Mike Spirko, the Streamliners band is a "jazz band with a rock-band mentality."

"People come to our shows to dance and even dress up. We have a kind of showmanship and dress the part," said Heflin, referring to the stage-presence of the 12-man band in wide lapels, hats and big slacks. "We play high-energy 1930s swing, sort-of like what you hear as popular swing these days, but this is old style. It swings harder."

The dapper big band knows the work of the jazz masters. Most of the musicians have been part of the UT music program; specifically, the jazz department. Their sets include Ellington and Basie standards - "Cotton Tail" and "One O'Clock Jump," "Sing, Sing, Sing" and "Echoes of Harlem." Multi-faceted reedman John Jayne, a graduate of the jazz program and the man wielding the baritone sax with the Streamliners, spoke of the band's blend.

"We're a mixture of different things. There's R&B-oriented stuff, and Be-Bop and classic swing," said Jayne, mentioning a tune they play called "Moose the Mooche" - an old and demanding bebop standard from the days of Charlie Parker. "We're trying to meet the interests of people who like to swing-dance but also those who like to listen," he said.

The Streamliners have played at various special events, making swing-night possible at the Campus Pub and bringing Basie to Market Square and Knoxville's Mardi Gras parade, where they won this year's "Most Unique and Original Crew" prize from atop their own float, playing for a host of Knoxville Swing Dance Association hepcats and kittens.

More information can be found by referencing Thomas Heflin on the Internet; he has a trumpet site/shrine and a Streamliners devotional. Their show starts at Fairbanks Roasting Room tonight at around 10 p.m.

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Copyright © 1999, The Daily Beacon. All rights reserved.